Abalone Shiu Mai Recipe
braised mini abalone, shrimp and pork dumpling
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Ingredients
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Dumpling Filling
Braising Sauce & Garnish
For Steaming
Method
Dumpling Filling
Prepare shrimp and pork mixture
Chop the shrimp coarsely and then pulse in a food processor 3–4 short times until you have a coarse paste (do not over-process into a smooth paste). Transfer to a bowl.
Finely chop the shiitake mushrooms and mince the green onion. Add mushrooms, green onion, grated ginger, ground pork, Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sugar, white pepper, salt, cornstarch and egg white to the shrimp in the bowl.
Mix the filling thoroughly using a spatula or your hand, pressing to develop a slightly sticky texture. The mixture should hold together when pressed—this helps the shiu mai keep shape.
Reserve 6 mini braised abalones whole (for topping). If abalones are whole and large, coarsely chop half of the remaining abalones and fold into the filling so each dumpling has abalone pieces inside.
Assembling & Steaming Shiu Mai
Prepare steamer: bring a wok or large pot of water to a rolling simmer. Line steaming basket with cabbage leaves or parchment to prevent sticking.
Assemble dumplings: place a wrapper in your palm, mound about 1 tablespoon (roughly 20–25 g) of filling into the center. Gather the wrapper sides up around the filling, leaving the top exposed, and gently press to form a neat open-topped cup. Repeat to make 24 dumplings.
Top each dumpling with one reserved mini braised abalone (center) and optionally a small piece of steamed pea or carrot for color. Place dumplings in the lined steamer basket, leaving slight gaps between them.
Steam dumplings: steam over simmering water, covered, for 8–10 minutes until the filling is cooked through (internal temperature ~70–74°C / 160–165°F) and wrappers are translucent. Avoid over-steaming to keep wrappers tender.
Braising Sauce & Finishing
Make sauce base: while the dumplings steam, combine chicken stock, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, Shaoxing wine and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
Thicken sauce: mix 1 tsp cornstarch with 1 tbsp cold water to make a slurry. Stir the slurry into the simmering sauce and cook 1–2 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and whisk in 1/2 tsp sesame oil.
Braise/finish dumplings: when dumplings are done, transfer them carefully to a shallow serving dish and spoon warm braising sauce over them so the sauce coats but does not submerge (about 2–3 tablespoons per 4 dumplings).